1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to an apparatus for emergency evacuation of people from tall buildings, particularly in incidents of fire, leakage of toxic gases, etc., when the building exits are apt to be blocked by fire and smoke during the emergency.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The object of the present invention is to devise an apparatus for avoiding the tragic consequences which are produced during emergencies in tall buildings when, as has been experienced in disasters under these circumstances, it is not possible to use the fire escapes, since typically the entrances to the stairs and fire escapes and to the building exits are blocked by smoke and flames, thereby inducing inappropriate panic reactions in the people prevented from exiting, with well known tragic results. The use in these cases of telescopic mechanical ladders has also been found to be ineffective due to their limited reach and also due to the likelihood of their being exposed to flames at any given time.
The panic which spreads among the occupants of a tall building when they learn of a fire is well known, particularly with regard to people located in the top floors of the building who, when they find themselves isolated due to the emergency exits being blocked as mentioned supra, attempt to reach a terrace, landing, or ledge, and once there, not finding any appropriate means for their evacuation, throw themselves off the building, agitated by desperation or fear of death.
There have been attempts to solve this type of problem by building escape apparatus or means into the structure of the building, but for various reasons these have not given efficient results. Accordingly, the known types of internal and external emergency stairways and ladders have survived over the years. Due to the drawbacks mentioned, these leave the occupants in danger and in need of rescue under the adverse circumstances of a fire or similar emergency.